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Belgian start for tough 2006 Giro
 Former Giro winner Gilberto Simoni shows off the 2006 route. MILAN, Italy -- The 2006 Giro d'Italia will start and feature four stages in Belgium before heading for tough mountain stages in the Dolomites and Western Alps, organizers revealed on Saturday. The 89th edition of Italy's most prestigious cycling race will pay homage to the victims of a 1956 mine disaster in Belgium in which 136 Italians were killed. The first of the 21-stage cycling marathon will be a 6.2 -kilometer individual time test in Seraing. The second of four Belgian legs will end in Charleroi-Marcinelle, where the disaster, which claimed the lives of 262 miners who perished following an explosion and fire. Paolo Savoldelli, this year's Giro champion, did not attend the unveiling ceremony but organizers said he was expected to defend his title next year. Two-time Giro champion Gilberto Simoni and Damiano Cunego, the Giro winner in 2004, said they were also likely to start in the race, scheduled May 6-28. Cunego and Simoni, both good climbers, said they liked the second part of the course in the Dolomites and western Alps. "There are some very tough legs. ... I hope it doesn't rain when we have to climb some non-asphalted sections. I'm looking forward to a successful year after an unlucky 2005 because of health problems," Cunego said. Mononucleosis hurt Cunego's chances in this year's Giro and prevented him from starting in the Tour de France. Italy's top sprinter, Alessandro Petacchi, said it looked like a very tough Giro. "I can see only five good stages for the sprinters and I will have to decide whether to start in the Giro or in the Tour de France," Petacchi said. One of Italy's top cyclists, Ivan Basso, has already said that he will only take part in the French race next year. Unusually, the 2006 Giro will feature a time-trial for teams in the fifth stage and a last stage split into two legs, which has already drawn criticism from the association of professional cyclists. Organizers said that the plan to have an 11-kilometer (6.8-mile) individual time trial ending at the Ghisallo hill followed by a 116-kilometer (72-kilometer) ride to Milan on the closing day of the race still must be approved by the International Cycling Union (UCI). The Giro is starting outside Italy for the eighth time in its history. Others have included Greece in 1996, France in 1998 and the Netherlands in 2002. Following the initial stages in Belgium, cyclists will have a day off to transfer to Piacenza for the first Italian leg Copyright 2005 CNN. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Associated Press contributed to this report. 
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